Baxter simulator

RSDK Wiki: http://github.com/RethinkRobotics/sdk-docs/wiki

Repository Description

Necessary files for the Gazebo™ simulation of the Baxter Research Robot from Rethink Robotics Inc.

Prequisites

• Setup Github - the [email protected] urls, below, only work if you have Setup Github and generated SSH Keys for Github.

• Ensure the following software packages are installed:

$ sudo sh -c 'echo "deb http://packages.osrfoundation.org/gazebo/ubuntu precise main" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/gazebo-latest.list'
$ wget http://packages.osrfoundation.org/gazebo.key -O - | sudo apt-key add -
$ sudo apt-get update
$ sudo apt-get install python-wstool python-rosdep ros-groovy-pcl-conversions ros-groovy-control-msgs ros-groovy-cmake-modules ros-groovy-qt-build ros-groovy-moveit-full ros-groovy-driver-common ros-groovy-image-common ros-groovy-rostest gazebo

You have already downloaded and installed the Rethink Robotics SDK into a catkin workspace

Baxter Installation

• From your catkin workspace where the SDK resides, use wstool to install and update:

    $ cd ~/ros_ws/src
    $ git clone [email protected]:RethinkRobotics/baxter_simulator.git
# IMPORTANT EARLY-DEV-RELEASE STEPS:
    $ cd baxter_simulator
    $ git checkout early_interface_dev
    $ cd ..
    $ wstool init # need to do this only if this is a new workspace where this command was not executed before.
    $ wstool merge baxter_simulator/baxter_simulator.rosinstall
    $ wstool update

* Install other dependent packages

    $ cd ~/ros_ws/src
    $ git clone https://github.com/ros/xacro.git -b hydro-devel
    $ git clone https://github.com/ros/roslint.git

* Build:

$ source /opt/ros/groovy/setup.bash
$ cd ~/ros_ws
$ catkin_make
$ catkin_make install 

* Use baxter.sh - it has a special hook for sim:

$ cp src/baxter/baxter.sh .

###Edit the your_ip value in baxter.sh

* Run the script with sim specified:

$ ./baxter.sh sim

### Simulation 

 * Start simulation with controllers:

$ roslaunch baxter_gazebo baxter_world.launch

By default the robot would be in disabled state. To enable, run the enable_robot script from the
baxter_tools package. To start and switch the controllers, use the JointCommand topic 
as documented in the Baxter SDK.

* Optional: Test/tune the velocity controllers or position controllers using a RQT dashboard GUI. 
Make sure you are in the right joint command mode when using these:

$ roslaunch baxter_sim_hardware baxter_sdk_position_rqt.launch

or

$ roslaunch baxter_sim_hardware baxter_sdk_velocity_rqt.launch

## Run SDK Examples

* Start Wobbler example:

$ ./baxter.sh sim $ rosrun baxter_examples joint_velocity_wobbler.py

* Start keyboard joint position example:

$ ./baxter.sh sim $ rosrun baxter_examples joint_position_keyboard.py

For additional information on the interfaces that are implemented with this release,
visit the [Simulator - API](https://github.com/RethinkRobotics/sdk-docs/wiki/Baxter-simulator-API) page, and the view the list of [examples] (https://docs.google.com/a/rethinkrobotics.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AuwgVjo4IL7VdHJudVFRQUVqQ1JKS3VKYldYd19heXc&usp=sharing#gid=0) working

## Start MoveIt

Works with simulation or hardware:

* Check out the Baxter MoveIt configuration package into your ROS workspace and rebuild:

$ cd ~/ros_ws/src $ git clone https://github.com/ros-planning/moveit_robots.git $ source /opt/ros/groovy/setup.bash $ cd .. $ catkin_make $ catkin_make install

* Start Trajectory Controller:

$ rosrun baxter_interface joint_trajectory_action_server.py

* Start MoveIt:

$ roslaunch baxter_moveit_config demo_baxter.launch